Want to learn how to create brilliant watercolor with refined depth? In this workshop you will be guided to develop or improve the skill of realism in watercolor by learning how to layer colors and create a rich three dimensional quality. You’ll work at your own pace from various objects or photo reference as we explore a variety of textures such as smooth, slick, rough, bumpy, grainy, coarse, fluffy, fuzzy, silky, and more. There will also be a brief demo on how to seal a painting for framing without glass.

Materials List: Here

Inspired by the 18th- and 19th-century tradition of collecting natural specimens, artifacts, and unusual discoveries, explore a variety of traditional craft techniques while creating your own Cabinet of Curiosities. This collaborative series brings together Historic Yellow Springs and Historic Sugartown for four individual workshops in botanical preservation, ceramics, paper marbling, cyanotype printing, and bookbinding.

Each workshop is offered separately, so you can choose the sessions that most interest you. Attend one workshop to explore a new technique, or choose two or more to begin building a more complete and cohesive collection of materials for your own Cabinet of Curiosities journal.

Saturday, October 24 | Historic Yellow Springs | Sarah Rafferty | 9:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Collecting & Preserving Specimens Begin by exploring ways to collect, dry, and press botanical specimens. You'll also create a small ceramic element by pressing a natural specimen into clay to create a unique button or fastener that can be used on a finished book.

Saturday, October 31 | Historic Sugartown | Ramon Townsend | 9:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Traditional Paper Marbling Learn the historic art of paper marbling and create one-of-a-kind decorative papers. Your marbled papers can become covers, endpapers, or pages in a future book project.

Saturday, November 8 | Historic Yellow Springs | 9:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m. Cyanotype Specimens Transform collected plants and other natural objects into striking blue-and-white cyanotype prints. Create a collection of images that can be incorporated into a handmade journal, displayed as artwork, or used in future creative projects.

Saturday, November 21 | Historic Sugartown | Ramon Townsend | 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m. Traditional Bookbinding Bring your collection together in Historic Sugartown's working bindery. Using traditional bookbinding techniques, create a handcrafted journal incorporating your marbled papers, cyanotypes, specimens, and other materials. Participants who have attended two or more of the previous workshops will have the opportunity to create a more finished and personalized Cabinet of Curiosities journal.

Each workshop can be enjoyed independently, and no previous experience in book arts, ceramics, or cyanotype printing is required. If you'd like to create the complete Cabinet of Curiosities experience, choose two or more workshops and build your collection over the course of the series.

Print, ink and repeat with plants from Historic Yellow Springs! Discover the excitement of printmaking and see your image come to life in each print. In this all day workshop, we’ll explore both monoprinting and linocut using nature as both inspiration and material to create beautiful artworks. Forage near the studio and explore the historic medicinal herb garden to gather materials for printing.

You’ll be guided through the entire process from drawing to carving to printing. Make multiple prints you can frame or give as a gift. Bonus: the printing plate is yours to keep for future printing. Try different colors, mix your own inks, and enjoy some creative camaraderie!

You’ll take home the custom plate you design for future use, along with all of the prints you create during the workshop.  $35 materials fee payable to the instructor.

• We believe art should be accessible to all. Scholarships are available for those who qualify.
• Membership is one of the easiest and most effective ways to support our mission! Learn more about it's benefits and discounts!

One of the most exciting techniques in gel plate printing is creating a “ghost print”—the beautiful image that’s left behind after the first pull—so I thought it would be a fun play on words for Halloween. The class would focus on layered prints using botanicals, vintage papers, image transfers, metallic accents, and rich autumn colors to create artwork that’s more whimsical and sophisticated than spooky.

$15 Materials Fee payable to the instructor

• We believe art should be accessible to all. Scholarships are available for those who qualify.
• Membership is one of the easiest and most effective ways to support our mission! Learn more about it's benefits and discounts!

Master the SECRETS to mixing accurate colors and values that will take your paintings to the next level.

Presented in a power packed yet relaxed format, you will gain a new understanding of color logic and professional techniques rarely taught in traditional classes.  Experience the confidence shift as you transition from "guessing and checking" to mixing with intentional, effortless precision. Join us for a day of interactive demos and “light bulb moments" designed to break through your blocks and reignite your excitement for oil painting!

Click HERE for a materials list for this workshop!

• We believe art should be accessible to all. Scholarships are available for those who qualify.
• Membership is one of the easiest and most effective ways to support our mission! Learn more about it's benefits and discounts!

In this beginner friendly workshop, you’ll learn the art of Shibori, a Japanese manual hand-dyeing technique which produces beautiful patterns in fabric in a range of blues using Indigo dye. Four different patterns will be taught - you’ll choose two techniques to prep your fabrics. Teens 14+ registered w/parents welcome

$35 materials fee covers one of the options listed below!

Students may choose to create:

• One 8"x72" silk scarf and One 11"x60" scarf  OR
• Two 18"x18" cotton pillow covers w/zippers OR
• One large cotton tote bag w/pocket 19"x17"x9.5" 

Indigo dye is a magical process turning blue from a green dye. 

Come see why everyone loves Shibori!

• We believe art should be accessible to all. Scholarships are available for those who qualify.
• Membership is one of the easiest and most effective ways to support our mission! Learn more about it's benefits and discounts!

Learn the basics of how to use gouache (pronounced GWASH), watercolor's opaque cousin. We will start the morning by completing a cheat sheet, learning a dozen basic application techniques and properties of gouache. In the afternoon, we will practice using gouache in a small painting.

• We believe art should be accessible to all. Scholarships are available for those who qualify.
• Membership is one of the easiest and most effective ways to support our mission! Learn more about it's benefits and discounts!

This workshop is for Veterans or Active Service Members only

Dive into the world of relief printmaking! Perfect for beginners eager to explore a timeless art form, we'll earn the basics of designing, carving, and printing your own unique creations using linoleum blocks. With hands-on guidance and plenty of practice, you'll develop the skills to produce beautiful to share with friends and family.

• We believe art should be accessible to all. Scholarships are available for those who qualify.
• Membership is one of the easiest and most effective ways to support our mission! Learn more about it's benefits and discounts!